[Ashley2]

Originally Posted by wanderernomad

What is the rationale in launching the same product with different trims and by different manufacturers?

The reason being to have products in various segments, without compromising and overdoing requirements of each of them.

[antz.bin]

Ashok Leyland Stile re-unveil on right now. Anyone from TBHP covering the event?

[Dry Ice]

Coverage from Motorbeam.com

http://www.motorbeam.com/cars/ashok-...launch-it-yet/

Ashok Leyland has yet again unveiled the Stile MPV, keeping an event in Chennai where Nissan Chairman and CEO, Mr. Carlos Ghosn was present. The company had already unveiled the Stile MPV at the 2012 Auto Expo and we fail to understand what was this new unveil all about. Contrary to reports, Ashok Leyland hasn’t launched the Stile in the Indian market yet, which will only go on sale in the festive season (around October 2013). The Siile will be the second vehicle in Ashok Leyland’s LCV range, the first being the Dost.
The Ashok Leyland Stile needs no introduction, after all it’s a doppleganger of the failed Nissan Evalia. Both cars use the same platform but Ashok Leyland has tweaked the styling to give the Stile it’s own unique identity. Last month Nissan sold a paltry 36 units of the Evalia in the Indian market and we are not quite sure as to how Ashok Leyland will manage better sales numbers. The company might undercut the Evalia’s pricing by a significant amount, aggressively positioning it in the commercial segment.
Just like the Evalia, the Stile will be manufactured at Renault-Nissan’s production facility at Oragadam, near Chennai. Ashok Leyland will offer the Stile with the option of second and third row of seating, thereby fitting into requirements of commercial sectors. Ashok Leyland states in the press release that the Stile was designed to take care of tasks such as hotel shuttles, ambulances, taxis, courier services, panel vans, etc. We all know Nissan designed the Evalia and the Stile is just badge engineering. So how did the Japanese company position the Evalia as an urban class utility vehicle when it’s nothing but a van.
The Ashok Leyland Stile is underpinned by a monocoque chassis and the diesel engine is being called DIET. Better known as Nissan’s dCi, the 1.5-litre diesel engine produces 85 HP of power and 200 Nm of torque, coupled to a 5-speed manual gearbox. The ARAI certified mileage of the Evalia is 19.3 km/l and the Stile should match it. The company will also offer a CNG version of the vehicle. Sliding doors and low floor makes the Stile an excellent alternative as a people and goods mover. Prices will be announced at the time of launch.

Pics -

[ajmat]

I am at the launch. It actually has a glove box lid, sliding rear windows, captain seats and a blower. Will write withies later

[deetjohn]

The front looks nice when compared to the Evalia. Hope it is not as under tyred as the Nissan.

Any pictures of the rear with the tailgate closed?

[Leymama]

Detail image gallery @ IAB

http://indianautosblog.com/2013/07/a...nched-87710/2#

[ambivalent_98]

From the side doesn't it look like the Evalia. I mean they just seemed to have changed the front to make it more Leyalandesque otherwise its an Evalia. I thought maybe Renault would bring a funky version of the Evalia with French design cues and call it something entirely different following Micra-Pulse , Sunny-Scala , Duster-Terrano.

[9thsphinx]

The big eyes with projectors give it a more prominent in-your-face look as compared to the Evalia. The alloys look smart too - a tad bigger in size and they would have looked better but maybe not so practical. Why the greenish-blue body graphics? I hope that is optional.

In all, a winner makeover from AL.

[julupani]

I really dont get what Leyland gets from this launch at all. Its a Nissan design, its a Nissan engine, and its made at a Nissan factory. All Ashok Leyland are doing is slapping their badge on and selling it through their dealerships.

To me it seems like Ashok Leyland are more like a distributor, at least with respect to the Stile.

And why would anyone buy this over the similar Nissan branded product?? If I want to use it as a mini-tourist vehicle, a hotel shuttle, a taxi, or a personal car I would definitely take the Nissan brand over the Leyland brand, unless the Leyland is significantly cheaper. Some sectors to which Nissan may not cater to like the panel van, ambulance etc the Stile will be the option.

This may be an option compared to the Tata Venture or Winger. But the Winger has a considerable size advantage, offering seating capacities upto 13. The Winger also has a huge dimension advantage allowing for more room inside, which is important in a panel van and also having a high roof version for even more space. For example in a Winger Ambulance even a 6-footer will be able to stand inside, which I doubt will be the case in a Stile.

But most of all, if Leyland are going to sell this through their LCV/SCV dealers, means it still does not have a nation-wide sales/service network.

[silversteed]

Originally Posted by 9thsphinx

The big eyes with projectors give it a more prominent in-your-face look as compared to the Evalia. The alloys look smart too - a tad bigger in size and they would have looked better but maybe not so practical. Why the greenish-blue body graphics? I hope that is optional.

The IAB pics show a slightly different STiLE. The headlamps are conventional halogen in reflector-type, which would help reduce costs. No body graphics. JK Vectra 185/80-R15 tyres are just enough. But they'll improve the FE. Interiors look well packaged, without any cost-cutting.

All in all, probably the taxi market would be happy with this product, IF priced right, like AL did with the DOST.

EDIT:

Originally Posted by julupani

I really dont get what Leyland gets from this launch at all. Its a Nissan design, its a Nissan engine, and its made at a Nissan factory. All Ashok Leyland are doing is slapping their badge on and selling it through their dealerships.

It's called badge engineering.

This may be an option compared to the Tata Venture or Winger. But the Winger has a considerable size advantage, offering seating capacities upto 13. The Winger also has a huge dimension advantage allowing for more room inside, which is important in a panel van and also having a high roof version for even more space. For example in a Winger Ambulance even a 6-footer will be able to stand inside, which I doubt will be the case in a Stile.

STiLE could be a contender to the Venture, but definitely not the Winger, because of the size advantage of the latter. It may offer some competition to the people movers like Innova or Xylo, if the pricing is right and marketing is aggressive.

However, I don't understand the logic behind this "launch" or "unveiling" that's done now. Maybe they are unveiling a sales-ready model, and not a prototype, like what was shown in the Auto Expo.

[Equus]

OEM model?

Nevertheless, its an interesting move with keeping the Evalia buyers in mind + get free money from AL as royalty(?). What happens if Stile sells more than Evalia OR a lot more?

[julupani]

Originally Posted by silversteed

It's called badge engineering.

With badge engineering, at least the other company does something, for example assembles the vehicle in their home country or something. At the minumum, you resort to badge engineering to enter a market where your brand is not known or will have certain unnecessary baggage. For example Dacias being sold as Renaults.

Over here I dont see ALL contributing anything significant at all.

Originally Posted by silversteed

STiLE could be a contender to the Venture, but definitely not the Winger, because of the size advantage of the latter. It may offer some competition to the people movers like Innova or Xylo, if the pricing is right and marketing is aggressive.

May be as a competitor to the Venture, but I doubt the Stile can be anywhere near as cheap as the Venture. Remember the Venture is a sub-4m vehicle and thus enjoys lower excise duty. The top of the line Venture can be had at about 6-lakhs and a base variant at about 5lakhs. I dont see the Stile being able to match that. Also thanks to under seat engine compartment of the Venture, the Stile is also not going to provide a huge advantage in terms of space.

As a competitor to the Innova/Xyle, unless the Stile is about 75thousand+ cheaper on-road than the Nissan, I am not picking a Leyland Stile over a Nissan Evalia. Brand matters in these cases, and unfortunately Leyland is a pure truck manufacturer. Unless Nissan wants to dump the Evalia all together, I dont see why they should give Leyland a huge price advantage in a market where they will be competing themselves.

Originally Posted by silversteed

However, I don't understand the logic behind this "launch" or "unveiling" that's done now. Maybe they are unveiling a sales-ready model, and not a prototype, like what was shown in the Auto Expo.

It seems in line with Leyland talking about a product for a really long time, before finally putting it on the market.

[DWind]

Originally Posted by julupani

Over here I dont see ALL contributing anything significant at all.

May be as a competitor to the Venture, but I doubt the Stile can be anywhere near as cheap as the Venture. Remember the Venture is a sub-4m vehicle and thus enjoys lower excise duty. The top of the line Venture can be had at about 6-lakhs and a base variant at about 5lakhs. I dont see the Stile being able to match that. Also thanks to under seat engine compartment of the Venture, the Stile is also not going to provide a huge advantage in terms of space.

ALL is bringing in the its sales and service network which is what Nissan lacks. Remember Stile (with its detuned engine) is targeted purely for cabs and Hospitality industry. And this market is purely driven by vehicle reliability and not brand.
BTW is Venture successful? I am not sure Nissan / ALL are really targeting Venture on the price front. They would rather target this at Tavera / Innova. I for one definitively feel Stile looks much better than Evalia and hope it sells better

[RSR]

Originally Posted by DWind

ALL is bringing in the its sales and service network which is what Nissan lacks. Remember Stile (with its detuned engine) is targeted purely for cabs and Hospitality industry. And this market is purely driven by vehicle reliability and not brand.

+1 to that. Mr. Carlos Ghosn clearly mentioned that Nissan alone would not be able to target the entire intended audience with the Evalia, but together with Ashok Leyland, they could do so. The Stile has the benefit of being sold and supported through the small CV network of Ashok Leyland (that currently sells and services the Dost). The Dost may not have been launched in all states yet, but in the ones they do, the truck sells well and they have built up a decent sales and support network that covers even small towns. Nissan would not have been able to build such a network so soon.

Besides taxi/fleet operators, the Stile makes for an excellent ambulance and in panel van form, it makes great sense as a closed goods carrier, courier vehicle, cash van, store-on-wheels etc. Selling the Stile to such customers through Ashok Leyland would be better as they want to keep the Nissan Evalia as an MPV for personal/family use. In the end, Nissan also benefits hugely from sales of the Stile, as it is they who make the vehicle alongside the Evalia at the plant of the Renault-Nissan alliance. Japanese companies in general have a positive view of sales of their own products under other brand names (Toyota iQ for Aston Martin, Suzuki A-Star for Nissan, Ertiga for Mazda among many such examples).

[urzdeepu]

If i have been asked to choose the Evalia or Stile, well i'll go for this one. I just loved its front cowl. Even the interior seems to be well placed for the passenger carrier.
And being priced below the Evalia, am sure Stile is going to eat into the shares of Tavera and Innova.
I dont think Winner is a competitor for this vehicle, neither is Venture since Winner seems to be a bit bigger than this one and can seat around 13 people. But Venture is way smaller than this and so seems to be the space too.